Consultants propose reclaiming advance payment for massive antiflooding project The Saigon Times Daily A view of a construction site of the VND10-trillion flood control project in HCMC. The consultants of the project have proposed taking back VND1.5 trillion advanced to the investor – PHOTO: LE ANH HCMC – The consortium of construction supervision consultants for a VND10-trillion flood control project in HCMC has proposed the HCMC government take back over VND1.5 trillion advanced to the project investor, Trung Nam Group, Vietnamplus news website reported. According to a HCMC Steering Center of the Urban Flood Control Program report sent to the municipal government, the consortium explained that the advance violates the law. To consider the proposal of the consultants, the steering center held a meeting with representatives of the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, Construction and Planning-Investment and Trung Nam Group’s subsidiary Trung Nam BT 1547 Co., Ltd. At the meeting, the subsidiary’s representative confirmed that the advance payment was reasonable and in line with prevailing regulations, such as the Construction Law, the Government’s Decree 37/2015/ND-CP on detailed regulations on construction contracts requiring that the advanced amount not exceed 50% of the total investment in the project, and the build-transfer contract between the municipal government and Trung Nam Group. The representative of the steering center echoed this view, stating that the consultants’ proposal was baseless. Trung Nam BT 1547 and Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) will assume responsibility for disbursing and reclaiming the money. The steering center’s… [Read full story]